In September 2026, I presented my journey from Ahmedabad to NYC, covering dance, science, caring for animals, evolution, etc., at the Carter Burden Luncheon Club. 
Video credit: Tessa Clark
Image credit: Danae Papapetrou and Marina Thomas 
Music: Sri Jayan Nair; Smt Maheswari Nagarajan
Guidance: Smt Maheswari Nagarajan and Smt Vanitha Jayan
Emcee and organizer: Milon Henry Levine - Compassionate Cultural Projects

A press release for this event: 
"Sloka Iyengar Brings Bharatanatyam, Dance and Neuroscience To NYC" 
​Dr Sloka Iyengar premiered "Mind-Dancer," her one-woman show about her life as a dancer and neuroscientist, at a Luncheon Club on Friday, October 2 in New York City. Dr. Iyengar holds a PhD in neuroscience from the University of South Carolina, though she grew up in Ahmedabad in Gujarat. Her story begins there... she talks about studying dance throughout the show and performs several wonderful and historic dances. "I get to honor and respect my traditions in sharing the expansive artistry of Bharatanatyam with people in NYC," Sloka said after the performance. "From the Sabarmati in Ahmedabad to the Hudson River in NYC, I see my work in science and dance as unified, universal, and one." 

Why does life exist at all on Earth? What is the origin of the diversity we see around us? Amazingly, the answers to these questions may lie in the study of the oceans! 

I am thrilled to start teaching the course Ocean Systems to educators as part of The American Museum of Natural History's Seminars on Science course.  

From the formation of the seabed, movement of tectonic plates, the study of mangroves, the microscopic plankton that create much of the oxygen we breathe, to weather patterns and climate, the oceans are an essential aspect of life on Earth and the diversity it contains.  

Whether we recognize it or not, we depend on the oceans for our lives. It is a privilege to study the dynamism of our planet and the power and vulnerability of the oceans. 

​Below is the diversity in my neighborhood: